By Guest Blogger, Donna DeClemente, Donna's Promo Talk

This year does finally appear to be the year for mobile promotions. I've done a few for clients and lately have been getting more and inquiries about integrating mobile in the mix for this up and coming holiday season. One program may even launch this Labor Day weekend. I'll update you on that as soon as I can.

Here's a interesting new technology that Office Depot is utilizing in a nationwide back-to-school mobile promotion that they recently launched. The objective of the promotion is to drive people into their stores for a chance to win one of 5,000 $100 gift cards. Now with many of us getting the kids ready to head back to school, we're all looking for the best deals and selection. I wrote this back-to-school promotion post a couple of weeks ago and confessed that I would be one of the many shoppers helping the economy by using my credit card for this purpose. From the numbers I've heard in the media, it seems that many of us are doing the same thing.

Office Depot will award a total of $500,000 in instant gift cards from this promotion that runs through Sept. 11. Al Roker from NBC's The Today Show is featured in their advertising as their spokesperson. The ad campaign includes TV, in-store and out-of-home print advertising, email, and online advertising on Facebook, Twitter and OfficeDepot.com.

Their agency, Momentum Worldwide, developed the promotion along with SpyderLynk, a marketing technology company that has created a logo-centric QR Code alternative called the SnapTag. When customers come into an Office Depot location they have to locate the SnapTag that is featured on in-store displays, take a picture of it with their mobile camera phone and send it to SnapTag to find out if they have won one of the $100 gift cards. These gift cards are instantly redeemable in-store. Winners just need to take their mobile phone over to the checkout counter to redeem their prize. Plus, all participants will receive mobile coupons good towards savings on back-to-school products.

With QR codes now becoming more and more popular, what's unique about this technology is the fact that you don't have to have a smart phone to participate. Any standard mobile phone with a camera will do. Since you don't need to scan anything as you would with most QR code solutions, you also don't need to download a scanning app. However, I understand that SpyderLynk does offer a free iPhone and Android app to scan SnapTags for those of us who prefer to do it that way.. And of course, there is an alternate means of entry. People can also participate without a mobile phone by visiting this website, gobacksmarter.com/home/, and filling out an online entry form.

I do think this is a pretty cool program and I'm planning to check out SpyderLynk to get some information on their fees for using this technology. It's appears simple enough to explain how to participate and it's a great way to drive traffic into retail locations. Plus utilizing the mobile redeemable gift cards as prizes is a great incentive that gives many participants chances to win instantly. I gotta get to an Office Depot and try this out. Let me know if anyone else has tried it and if so what you think of the experience.